Reading a guest in the first hour

The first hour is a study. Do they want names and chat, or a glass and silence? Do they flinch at perfume? Do they put the phone face down? Do they walk the boat like they own it, or like they are visiting someone's taste?

Shoes off or on. Diet that is real versus diet that is a performance for the table. Who is actually in charge in a couple. Children: schedule, nanny, or chaos. Write it down the same evening.

I greet like a host, not a friend. Warm, short, then I disappear into competence. They will open if they want to. They will not, if you crowd.

A guest who is rude is still a guest. A guest who is kind is still a guest. The standard does not move with their mood. Yours can stay even.